Amazon is closing down Freevee, the ad-supported video streaming service that launched in 2019 as IMDb Freedive before rebranding as IMDb TV and then as Amazon Freevee in 2022.
Freevee has been available as an app for mobile and TV, and its free movies and TV shows can also be accessed via Amazon’s Prime Video platform. But some things are about to change.
In a widely reported statement, Amazon said on Tuesday that it has decided to phase out Freevee over the coming weeks “to deliver a simpler viewing experience for customers.”
It continued: “There will be no change to the content available for Prime members, and a vast offering of free streaming content will still be accessible for non-Prime members, including select originals from Amazon MGM Studios, a variety of licensed movies and series, and a broad library of FAST (free advertising-supported streaming television channels), all available on Prime Video.”
In other words, the Freevee branding is going away, but much of its content will simply become part of Prime Video. It means that non-Prime members with an Amazon account can continue to access free video streaming content, which will soon be showing under a “watch for free” label on the Prime Video platform.
In that sense, it feels like a small change, though it remains to be seen if it affects the quality and amount of content that Amazon makes available for free going forward.
Free content currently showing on Prime Video (still branded as Freevee at the time of writing) include Amazon originals such as Reacher, The Wheel of Time, and The Grand Tour, movie favorites like Lethal Weapon, comedy classics such as The Three Stooges and Mr Bean, and a bunch of Christmas movies.
Amazon’s update will impact viewers in the U.S., UK, Germany, and Austria, where Freeview has been available.